Rep. Price: DeVos will be great for kids

No issue means more to the future of our state than improving educational outcomes for Michigan’s children. That’s why we continue to focus on early literacy and preparing our high school graduates for meaningful careers and college.

You’ve likely read that President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Betsy DeVos to serve as U.S. education secretary in his administration. DeVos firmly believes a child’s zip code shouldn’t determine how far they can go in life, and that’s why she’s pushed so hard to expand opportunities for poor and at-risk children. I completely agree with DeVos that we should trust parents to make the best educational choices for their own children.

As the chair of the House Education Committee, I consistently hear from school leaders around the state that their schools are being micromanaged by an extensive, and growing, list of federal and state mandates. The good news is President-elect Trump and Secretary-designate DeVos share a desire to reduce the size of the federal government footprint in education. With DeVos as education secretary, we can rest assured that she’ll not pursue the kind of federal overreaches we’ve seen in the recent past.

A particular passion and priority of mine is to improve early literacy, and that’s why I introduced a K-3 reading bill four years ago. This new law is currently being implemented across the state. I appreciate the strong and consistent support of the Great Lakes Education Project (GLEP), which DeVos served as a board member, throughout the legislative process.

As secretary of the U.S. education department, DeVos will show the rest of the country her passionate advocacy to improve educational outcomes for all students.

Rep. Amanda Price, R-Park Township, chairs the House Education Committee and chairs Gov. Rick Snyder’s Pre-K – 12 Literacy Commission.